Accord's Ambassadors
are collectively the personal assistants and secretaries of the eponymous Thinker. Modus operandi The Ambassadors were formed by Accord in order to carry out his long term plans to benefit humanity. All prospective Ambassadors are accomplished people, or those with the potential to be, that Accord has selected and tested rigorously.The five employees arrived right on time. Satisfactory. He opened the door to his room and invited them in. Three men, two women, immaculate, all in proper business attire. His vetting process was strict, and each step up the ladder required both his invitation and the employee’s acceptance. Each step required them to prove their worth, to face progressively more stress and heavier workloads, and to hold themselves up to his increasingly exacting standards of perfection. It might have made for reality television, if it weren’t for the blood that was shed along the way. Theirs and others. “You are being promoted,” he said. “After tomorrow, you will be my ambassadors, my representatives to the rest of the world.” The displays of emotion were well hidden, but they were there. They were pleased. “That is all.” Wordless, the five marched out of his room. - Excerpt on Interlude 20.y At the end of this time they meet Accord's nigh impossible standards and are fully on board for his plans.Citrine lifted the file folder, opened it and handed me a set of pages, neatly stapled. The entire thing was high-resolution, complete with a picture and lines of text in labeled boxes. Much of it was neatly censored with black bars. A young man, in his mid twenties, his hair immaculate, parted to one side, wearing a high quality business suit. ‘Kurt’, last name censored. Date of birth censored. Age twenty-five. The next page was more details. Personality tests, psychiatric tests, GPA in middle school and high school, post-secondary education, work history. ‘Kurt’ had ascended to the role of head chef at a record pace, returned to school to get a four year education in three years, then started working for Accord. ‘Pam’. Contract lawyer for a major firm, made partner at age twenty-eight, stepped down to work for Accord. ‘Shaw’, ‘Laird’, and ‘Kyesha’ followed the same pattern. “They are going through the vetting process as we speak. Experienced members of Accord’s businesses, on board with his plans, and loyal,” Citrine said. ... “Cauldron,” I said. “Accord’s using Cauldron to empower his employees.” - Excerpt from Imago 21.4 They are then given top tier cauldron vials, screened, and then have them administered. If they emerge unscathed they join the Ambassadors ranks. As a supervillain group operating within Boston, Massachusetts, they are collectively Accord's assistants and secretaries, they are almost unbeatable when Accord commands them directly in the field. They wear colorful, tailored, thematic and gendered costumes with males wearing formal suits while females wear elegant if impractical dresses,Accord was joined by his Ambassadors. Each wore a finished mask, a suit for the men and a dress for the ladies: Citrine in yellow, with gemstones; Othello in alabaster white and jet black, all stark contrasts; Ligeia in a deep blue-green that contrasted her dark skin, with a conch-shell mask that swept back over the corner of her forehead, with an ‘up’ hairstyle to match; Jacklight, with a deep royal purple dress shirt and pocket square, his mask a grinning visage that would be fitting for a child’s jack-in-the-box; and Lizardtail, bigger than the others, with a green dress shirt and pocket square, an ornate mask that looked more like a Celtic knot than anything lizardlike. Maybe the segments or spiral of it were supposed to represent a cut tail? He’d arrived with firepower, in short. Parian didn’t consider herself very combat-savvy, but she was aware of that much. - Excerpt from Interlude 21.y a final accessory is a badge, brooch or pin that complements the ensemble.And in each room were people in costume. Other teams had themes, natural or otherwise. Their costumes matched, or they unconsciously mirrored one another in style of dress or quality. Accord’s people were much the same, but it was very deliberate. Each wore fine clothing, elegant dresses and suits, and each had their hair neatly combed into place, oiled to the point that it looked wet. The ‘costumes’ were in the color of their chosen formal wear and badges or brooches they wore, as well as the finely crafted masks that hid any trace of their real expressions. “You’re not expecting me to dress like them, are you?” “No,” Accord said. “Truth be told, I fear you could never meet my standards, and I’m going to do my level best to ignore the fact that you exist. You’ll want to keep to the areas I designate and use the back ways out of the building, so that I never see you.” - Excerpt on Interlude 19.x It seems that whenever Accord needs to replace one of his ambassadors he always tries to get one with a similar power to the one before. When he purchases Cauldron vials he asks for those of the same "quality" as his previous purchase.The Ambassadors Led by Accord, the Ambassadors hail from a smaller territory in Boston. Sporting tailored formalwear and ornate masks with brooches and pins rather than spandex and emblems, the Ambassadors are described a team of heavy hitters that even the Travelers weren’t keen on butting heads with. Led by a Thinker to organize them, they’re something of an elite force. After some losses at the hands of the Slaughterhouse Nine in Boston, they’ve come to Brockton Bay in hopes of joining the Undersider’s alliance. - Cast (in depth) He does not recruit natural triggers, possibly because so few could meet his exacting standards. They do not commit to impossible causes, unless forced to."You would have me risk good help on fruitless fights against immortal killing machines," Accord said. - Excerpt from Interlude 20.y Structure The ambassadors are essentially Accord's secretaries, assistants and errand people. Some, like Citrine, can be empowered to represent Accord in his dealings with different groups. They are also powerful combatants, each considered a major heavy hitter. PRT Response While in Boston The PRT largely left the Ambassadors alone as they kept the peace in the Cherleston area of Boston, Massachusetts.“Yes. We’re staying a little bit longer here. We looked into it, the heroes don’t have a strong presence here in your Charlestown territory. We can get away with just a little bit more.” ... Accord looked down and corrected the position of the pen on his desk before turning back to Trickster. “Fifteen thousand dollars, and fifteen percent of any take. The heroes don’t have a strong presence here because they don’t need a strong presence here. I maintain the peace. It will cost me if I have people here, active and causing trouble.” - Excerpt from Migration 17.8 The organization was aware of Accords violent attitude however, and are essentially classified as a supervillain group. History Years ago,He’d taken the time one afternoon to solve world hunger. Six hours and twenty-six minutes with the internet and a phone on hand, and he’d been able to wrap his head around the key elements of the problem. His boss had barely looked at the binder before calling it impossible, then demanded Accord return to work. A mind like his, in an office handling economic oversight within the PRT, looking for the precogs and thinkers who were trying to manipulate the markets to their own ends. It was only one imbalance, one irregularity, but it had been an important one. It had nagged at him, demanded resolution. He had to prove it was possible. ... Twenty-three years to see it all through. Twenty-three years to bring the world into order. Everything was a step towards those ends. - Excerpt from Interlude 20.y newly freed from jail a former Watchdog Thinker started collecting money and influence to put his plans into motion. He took to recruiting like minded individuals. He got into rivalries with various villains in the city, notably Blasto. Post-Slaughterhouse Nine The Ambassadors were whittled down to two members after being raided by the Slaughterhouse 9. Post-Echidna After the Ambassadors arrived in Brockton Bay, Accord contacted Cauldron and requested five serums to give to his subordinates. Only four out of the five people he gave the serum to survive; Codex, Lizardtail, Ligeia, and Jacklight. Accord traded information with the Undersiders to get Tattletale to tell them what powers they had before sending them against the Teeth with the Undersiders in order to test these same powers. Post-Timeskip Even with Accord's death the Ambassadors continued as a group,“We lose nothing, and we gain time,” I said. “Which big guns do we have?” "The Thanda. Cauldron has volunteered the services of their two elite members. The Las Vegas Capes offered help, as did the Ambassadors. The Alcott girl has her ability to foresee the future, but she’s trying to reduce the strain she experiences so she can offer more assistance at the most critical juncture.” - Excerpt from Sting 26.5 overseen by the Undersiders. Members Gallery Forsberg_Gallery.jpg|Accord, Citrine, and Othello meet with the gangs of Brockton Bay. 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